Kevin Long

There are just 28 days until pitchers and catchers report to spring training. Kevin Long has had a busy winter vacation, and spoke to Pete Caldera of the Record. I am going to post some of what he had to say. He traveled to Tampa to see Jorge Posada, Miami to spend some time with Arod and the Dominican Republic to work with Cano. He said last year as a whole there were too many missing pieces and it just never clicked on all cylinders. He is talking about the teams offense. He says as long as everyone remains healthy that 900 runs is a realistic goal. He also said that the team has to get better and he has to get better, building on what Cashman did this winter. He said he sees Big Tex batting third and Arod fourth with Matsui fifth and Posada hitting sixth, he says these two guys being healthy and in the 5 and 6 slot should make a huge difference. Speaking of Posada he says "He gives us that leadership and grit we were missing." Earlier this week Long spent 3 days in Tampa with Jorge who has increased his throwing to 90 feet and is expecting to be ready for opening day. "Looking at his swing it was just like i remember it, short,compact and explosive from both sides." This is a very good sign, as they really need him, not just how good he is offensively, he really is the vocal leader of this team. He said of Arod who he plans on visiting one more time before spring training. "It's not so much mechanical anymore, its about him feeling good,making sure his mind is right." I wouldn't worry about Arod, everyone forgets he did miss about a month last year with the injured leg and he still put up good numbers and he just didn't have the protection in the lineup. He said Arod is anxious, fired up, ready to go. He said Cano is also ready to go and thinks that September benching kick started something. "There were a lot of changes that occured in September,from the standpoint of how he played the game." He said he may have gone from 80-100 percent in his concentration level. He took the mechanics he learned from Long in September into winter ball and also hired a person strength and conditioning coach. I never really liked Kevin Long, but I do like his optimism and the fact he admits he has to get better. I do think Cano is going to have a huge year, i just wish Girardi would of benched him earlier in the year, i think Tex will have a huge impact on the team, Arod will be better, and having Matsui and Jorge healthy and in that lineup will just be huge as they are both teriffic hitters. I really think this team is set up to go a long way and I can't wait for spring training to get going. This offense also won't feel as much pressure because of the pitching, they know they have CC,AJ and Wang and Joba going and feel they have a great shot at winning everyday. It should be fun to see how much more relaxed this lineup may be and if they can all be together for a long time, Girardi having the same lineup would be great. I think if Long fails this year then he is gone but since he is still here, i have to hope he will get it done. It is good to see he worked so hard in the offseason with these guys.